July 2026

The Complete Fashion Moodboard Glossary: Every Term You Need to Know

Fashion moodboarding has its own vocabulary, built up over more than a decade of platforms, communities, and creative practice. Whether you are new to the space or a Polyvore veteran returning after years away, this glossary covers every term you will encounter on sèvre and platforms like it.

Core platform terms

Set — The primary unit of content on fashion moodboard platforms. A set is a digital collage of product images arranged on a canvas by a user. Sets can be outfit-focused, aesthetic-focused, or themed around a specific brief or contest. The term originated on Polyvore and is used on sèvre and URStyle.

Moodboard — A broader term for a curated visual collection communicating a style vision. In fashion design, moodboards precede the creation of a collection. On consumer platforms, moodboard and set are often used interchangeably, though a moodboard may include non-product references such as colour swatches, photography, or texture images.

Canvas — The blank workspace on which a set is built. On platforms like sèvre, the canvas is freeform: items can be placed, resized, rotated, and layered anywhere. Grid-based canvases constrain items to fixed positions and are generally considered less expressive.

Set builder — The tool used to create sets. A good set builder includes search and browsing across a product catalog, the ability to add items to the canvas, resize and reposition them, control layering order, and publish or save as draft. The quality of the set builder is the most important technical feature of any fashion moodboard platform.

Freeform canvas — A set builder where items can be placed at any position without being constrained to a grid. Polyvore used a freeform canvas, which is widely credited as central to why sets made on it looked editorial rather than like product grids. sèvre uses a freeform canvas. Many alternatives use grid-based layouts which produce visually inferior results.

Layering — Placing one product image on top of another on the canvas to create depth and a styled appearance. Layering is one of the primary techniques that distinguishes a fashion set from a product listing. Controlling the order of layers (bringing an item to the front or sending it to the back) is a core set builder feature.

Background removal — The process of cutting a product image from its original background so only the item remains. On sèvre, items in the catalog already have their backgrounds removed; for uploaded items, background removal is applied automatically.

Draft — A set that has been saved but not published. Drafts are visible only to the creator. On sèvre, free accounts have unlimited drafts, allowing users to work on multiple sets before deciding which to publish.

Published set — A set that has been made visible to the community. Published sets appear in feeds, are eligible for votes and comments, and can be entered into contests.

Catalog and product terms

Product catalog — The database of shoppable items available to users when building sets. A larger and more current catalog is one of the most significant quality differentiators between platforms. sèvre launches with 2,000+ brands in the catalog.

Shoppable item — A product in the catalog that carries a direct link to where it can be purchased. When a viewer taps a shoppable item in a published set, they are taken to the retailer page. Shoppable items generate affiliate revenue when a purchase is made.

User upload — An item added to the set builder by a user from their own files rather than from the platform catalog. User uploads allow creators to include vintage pieces, archive items, personal wardrobe items, or products not yet in the catalog.

One of a Kind — A sèvre designation for uploaded items that cannot be purchased anywhere. Rather than showing a Buy button, these items are presented as unique pieces within the set, credited but not shoppable.

My Picks — A saved collection of items a user has starred while browsing the catalog, to use in future sets.

Shop This Set — The section of a published set that lists every shoppable item with its brand, name, price, and a direct purchase link.

Community and feed terms

Discover feed — The main feed showing sets from creators you do not follow. On sèvre, the Discover feed uses a flat algorithm with no follower advantage: sets are ranked by quality and engagement rather than by the popularity of their creator.

Following feed — A feed showing sets only from creators you follow.

Latest feed — A chronological feed showing all published sets in real time, unfiltered by algorithm. Every newly published set appears here regardless of follower count or engagement history.

Flat algorithm — An algorithmic approach to content ranking that does not give weight to follower count. A flat algorithm means a set from an account with zero followers can rank alongside a set from an established creator if the quality and engagement warrants it. sèvre uses a flat algorithm in Discover.

Pay to play — A platform dynamic where visibility is determined by spending money on promotion. sèvre explicitly rejects this.

Contest terms

Community contest — A style contest open to all Pro members of sèvre, run around a theme or brief. Entry is included in the Pro subscription.

Paid contest — A contest with a real cash prize pool, typically $25 to $250, winner takes the pool.

Brand contest — A contest funded and briefed by a fashion brand. The brand provides a creative direction and funds the prize pool. Creators produce sets around the brand's collection. Winners receive cash prizes.

Contest brief — The creative direction given for a contest. A brief specifies the theme, any required items or brands, the judging criteria, and the prize.

Watchlist — A list of contests a user is following without entering. Watchlist users can see entries as they come in before voting opens.

Creator tier and earning terms

Milestone tiers — The progression system on sèvre, based on contest wins. The tiers are: Winner (3 wins), Rising Stylist (10), Verified Stylist (25), Elite Stylist (50), Master Stylist (100), and Iconic (250).

Affiliate earnings — Commission earned by a creator when a viewer purchases an item through a shoppable link in one of their sets. Unlocked at the Elite Stylist milestone on sèvre.

Affiliate link — A tracked URL that attributes a purchase to the platform or creator who referred the buyer. Every shoppable item in a sèvre set carries an affiliate link.

Ambassador — The highest recognition tier on sèvre, awarded by invitation to the most exceptional and longstanding creators in the community.

Brand Use Permission — An opt-in setting on sèvre that allows brands whose products appear in your sets to download and use those sets for their own marketing, with mandatory attribution.

UGC (User Generated Content) — Content created by users of a platform rather than by the platform itself. Fashion sets are UGC.

Historical terms

Polyvore — The original fashion moodboard platform, founded in 2007 and shut down on 10 April 2018 following its acquisition by SSENSE. At its peak, Polyvore had more than 20 million monthly users. Read the full story of what happened to Polyvore.

SSENSE — The Canadian luxury retailer that acquired Polyvore in 2018 and shut it down.

URStyle — The fashion moodboard platform that launched as a Polyvore alternative in 2018 and currently has the most active community among the available alternatives. See the sèvre vs URStyle comparison.

sèvre — A fashion moodboard app launching in late 2026. Built as a direct successor to Polyvore, with a freeform mobile-first set builder, 2,000+ brand catalog, community, and a three-tier contest system with real cash prizes. Join the waitlist.